Goldman Offers Loans to Stretched Employees

Goldman Sachs got its bailout. Now some of its bankers, those aristocrats of Wall Street, apparently need a bit of a bailout too.

Goldman, which accepted billions of taxpayer dollars last fall and, as learned Sunday, was also a big beneficiary of the rescue of the American International Group, is offering to lend money to more than 1,000 employees who have been squeezed by the financial crisis. The loans, offered via e-mail last week, could range from a few thousand dollars to hundreds of thousands.

Working at Goldman has long been regarded as a sure path to riches. But Goldmanâs employees are losing money on their personal investments â particularly in Goldmanâs own elite investment funds, which have been considered one of the perks of working at the bank.

Now these funds have stumbled, and some Goldman employees who financed their gilded lifestyles by borrowing in good times are suddenly short on cash needed to meet commitments to their personal investments in the funds. âItâs a problem with the culture of spending,â said Gustavo Dolfino, the president of Whiterock Group, a Wall Street recruitment firm. âNo matter how much you have, you spend like you have a lot more.â

The development comes at a tumultuous time for Goldman Sachs, which is struggling to recapture its former glory â and profits â since it became an old-fashioned bank holding company. Goldman is one of the eight banks that were told to accept taxpayer money, and it is trying to pay that money back soon.

At least one of the vehicles, in a group known as the Whitehall funds, sank more than 50 percent last year. Another let its investors withdraw their money this year â at a significant loss.

With a focus on real estate and private equity investments, the funds â which also include Goldman Sachs Capital Partners â have traditionally performed extremely well, sometimes increasing sevenfold in a few years. Goldman even promoted its employee participation in the funds as a selling point to outside investors.